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First set-back: experienced loud pops and crackles during battles scenes in Fellowship of the Ring EE DVD (among others places, I heard this throughout chapter 1 and during the fireworks at the very start of chapter 5). Had DTS 6.1 ES audio selected. Heard similar distortions, though less frequently with DD5.1 EX. This was over analog outs.

I finally worked around it by setting my front channels to SMALL in the 5000 menu. Not sure why I would need to do that. I need to re-test over digital outs.

The solution I found works fine, but it takes away some of the punch where there is a lot of energy in the soundtrack.

Can anyone confirm this using a different receiver? (mine is Denon 3805)

I had the same problem, and I'm also using the analog outs. I believe the dynamic range of the 5000 and the HD audio is so great that the normal volume setting is such that the loud bass is driving the speakers beyond anything I've ever experienced.

My speakers are big Magnepans, which are bi-amped with a pair of Threshold S300 amps, so they can take alot. I agree the 'small' setting takes care of it, but for the reason you stated, I decided to leave the setting as 'large'. I have the alternative option of instead controlling the bass to the fronts using the bi-amp crossover control to reduce it only to the extent necessary.

The 5000 does have a Dynamic Range compression setting. I have not tried using that yet but you might see if that helps, rather than setting the fronts to small.

I had the same problem, and I'm also using the analog outs. I believe the dynamic range of the 5000 and the HD audio is so great that the normal volume setting is such that the loud bass is driving the speakers beyond anything I've ever experienced.

My speakers are big Magnepans, which are bi-amped with a pair of Threshold S300 amps, so they can take alot. I agree the 'small' setting takes care of it, but for the reason you stated, I decided to leave the setting as 'large'. I have the alternative option of instead controlling the bass to the fronts using the bi-amp crossover control to reduce it only to the extent necessary.

The 5000 does have a Dynamic Range compression setting. I have not tried using that yet but you might see if that helps, rather than setting the fronts to small.

Is it possible that one of the audio settings in the 5000 is telling it to copy the LFE data to the front speakers? It shouldn't be the large/small setting (unless they did something wrong).

I'm a little unclear on the best settings to use when sending the digital audio output from the 5000 (optical or coax) to a processor that is only DD EX and DTS 6.1 Matrix compatible. Based on what I've read, it seems like the best option is to set the 5000 to "Bitstream Audiophile." If I'm understanding this correctly, this will give me the native multi-channel DD or DTS tracks, or the core DTS track for discs that use DTS-HD or MA tracks. Also, if a firmware update allows multi-channel Dolby TrueHD on the 5000, this should give me the core DD track over the optical output as well. Do I understand this correctly?

One thing I'm not clear on is what is sent over the coax/optical outputs when the disc uses a 7.1 channel track. Will the core be a 6.1 channel track using a matrix encoded 6th channel over 5.1 "actual" channels -- i.e. will I end up with a DTS 6.1 matrix mix (or a DD EX mix once the 5000 does multi-channel TrueHD)? This is essentially how DTS 6.1 Discreet works on DVD's, but I'm not clear how things are handled with the new advanced codecs to ensure backwards compatibility with previous systems. I'm trying to fully understand how all the channels are mixed down. I realize that the sound won't be the highest quality level when using the optical or coax outputs, but I want to confirm that I'm not missing any actual channels, and I'd like to more fully understand where the 7.1 information is mixed when sent to an older, 6.1 system.

I have a Lexicon DC1 at the moment, which only handles DD EX and DTS 6.1 Matrix via optical or coax and has no multi-channel analog inputs. I want to ensure the best audio from my 5000 in this setup since I'm not going to be getting a new processor for a while.

I finally got a chance to view the infamous Transformers chapter 3 snow scene, and here are my thoughts when viewing on a 73" Mitsubishi CRT (9" guns) that's been professionally calibrated. I'm using a relatively high grade HDMI cable with a DVI adapter on the TV end.

I definitely can see what people are talking about -- it looks like an unusually high amount of grain in the white snow, and has a "rapidly moving pepper" look to it. I would certainly not call it "unwatchable," however, and I'm not convinced that it isn't just excessive grain in this scene that is not being reduced via noise reduction due to the specific character of the grain.

The specific processing of the 5000 may interact a bit odd with this grain, or it could be a little light with it's Noise Reduction (NR.) As I've said before, this would make sense given the earlier problem with 1000 doing too MUCH NR. Samsung may be a little NR shy at this point. It's also possible, however, that this is close to what it looked like in the theaters. I honestly can't remember at this point, but it's not so bad that this isn't a real possibility. I've certianly scene grain this bad before in theatrical presentations of main-stream films.

Something to note is that this snow shot/s is most likely highly composited, and may in fact be largely CG, so it's possible that they added a bit too much grain when trying to match the film elements. I'm completely open to the idea that there could still be some sort of glitch in the way the 5000 is doing noise reduction, but at this point I have a hard time calling it a "malfunction" without seeing the original film. Even if I saw this scene on another player, it still wouldn't put the "blame" on the 5000 since another player could simply have differentor more aggressive NR algorithms. I currently have to entertain the possibility that the film itself simply has unusually high grain in this scene, which in turn COULD simply mean that the 5000 is reproducing what's on the original source. I just can't say for sure at this point since I don't have a proper point of reference (which is the original film projected in the theater.)

Some people (not eurotrance, but some others) have seemed to imply that they see this effect in any "bright areas" of a scene, but this is definitely NOT my experience. There are plenty of fully blown out areas in other scenes in Transformers-- sunlight coming in windows and reflecting off of various surfaces -- where there is NO unusual grain in these areas. The white areas go full white in these other scenes and do not have the grain that the snow scene has. This seems to clearly indicate that the source material and/or transfer are directly related to this issue. In other words, this player is not just adding noise to bright areas. IF the player has a problem (which is still an "if" in my opinion) it's something to do with the way it handles grain in certain situations.

Those are my impressions of this scene. If you're reading this and wondering about this particular issue, my personal opinion (which I admit is entirely subjective) is that most people would not notice a "problem" in this regard. I honestly think that most people wouldn't notice it at all, and even if they did they would just see this as more grain that usual, but that it wouldn't really bother them. Overall I find the picture quality of this player to be excellent, and I'm rather surprised at how much criticism it's received so far.

Please understand that I do NOT mean to discount anything that eurotrance or some others have said in this regard. I fully respect their opinions. I simply have had a different experience then they did when viewing these scenes.

Both DTS HD (HR and MA) and Dolby TrueHD include a standard 5.1 core but you'd need a way to tell the player to send the core rather than the entire bitstream. In some cases this would be a no brainer: "Bitstream audiophile" mode should result in DD 5.1 out the optical. The 5000 may very well do that WHEN it fully implements TrueHD. Right now, it's downmixing all TrueHD to 2.0.

Only DTS-HD contains a core track. Both DD+ and TrueHD need to be re-encoded to DD for optical output. It is mandatory on HD-DVD to be able to re-encode to DD, however on Blu-Ray it is only mandatory to include a DD track along with TrueHD. It is hard to tell which of the two specs (or somewhere in between) the 5000 is currently following. I can't wait until we can all stop talking about this since all variaitions will JUST WORK.

for anyone hooking up their 5k through s/pdif (optical or coax), i would suggest the bitstream reencode setting...

btw, i forgot to mention that when i was setting up my player, and again, i'm hooked up via coax s/pdif, the test tone in the speaker setup menu would not send sound to anything other than the front l/c/r channels...i tried what i think was all possible settings and combinations of settings but this did not change...i pressed on and was happy that all software played back properly.

also, i can't get the networking to work...i have dhcp on and dns auto as well...maybe if i unplug it and plug it back in while the network cable is attached (initially i only plugged the network cable in after she was up and running)...

I found another "glitch" associated with the new 5000. When I originally set up the player to my Pioneer 5010fd I set the HDMI output to 24f/s because my tv does accept this format. I only had HD-DVD's at the time and this worked perfectly. When I bought my first Blu-Ray disks and tried to watch them I experienced some problems. When the disk would start up between every screen change (between the menu, the FBI Warining, opening credits, etc.) the player would pause and would force me to hit the play button to get the disc to restart between every screen unitl I finally got to the movie. This was with Blu-Ray discs only, not HD-DVD's. Whille watching Black Hawk Down last night I dropped the remote, and the input to the TV changed. When I switched the input back to the right one I noticed that it caused the Samsung to pause. I went back to the setup menu and changed the output mode to 1080p 60f/s, and now the Bul-Ray discs play perfectly. There seemed to be a HDMI "handshake" issue between my TV and the 5000 when it was set to 24f/s while playing Blu-Ray discs.

I'm glad that I discovered this issue because I was about to return the player. Honestly, I can't tell the difference between 24 f/s and 60 f/s. I know that this player has been a big disappointment to most in this forum, but the ability to play both formats on one player with full compatability for both formats makes this player the best choice out there. Even if it does have a few "problems" that will probably be fixed with a firmware upgrade.

also, i can't get the networking to work...i have dhcp on and dns auto as well...maybe if i unplug it and plug it back in while the network cable is attached (initially i only plugged the network cable in after she was up and running)...

Before I wired my 5K into AV rack (where I have no wired ethernet), I hooked it up to a wired net and TV in my home office and went through the set up procedures for network access. Although the 5K never did indicate it had received a DHCP address, my router showed it had assigned one and the 5K did indeed "phone home" when told to and indicated that no firmware update was needed.

With the RJ45 unplugged, the 5K showed "no network connection", so it definitely had a DHCP address when attempting to phone home... just never displayed one.

I received the BD-UP5000 earlier this week, but I didn't have time to set it up until today.

I'm connecting it to an Optoma HD80 via an Onkyo 605, using HDMI. This setup worked well for my PS3; however, there's a problem (which also occurs when connecting directly to the projector and bypassing the receiver): The image is magenta. At startup, the Samsung logo is properly displayed (i.e., the colors are correct), but the image immediately degrades into a pink-hued nightmare on the next screen.

I'm using Close Encounters as a test disc.

Any recommendations or does this unit need to be returned?

I see that no one has answered this one. It is an HDMI handshake issue. I've had this happen (rarely) with my Samsung 1200 BD player. Fix - cycle through your projector inputs back to where the player is connected and that should solve it. If not, it may be an HDMI cable issue. Good luck.

I have had this player 5 days no and so far it has been excellent. DVD upconversion is outstanding and of course so is HDDVD and Bluray DVD playback. It is an extremely quiet player and nice not having to hear the whining fan of my PS3 anymore. Plus now my family does not have to worry about multiple players when I am not around. With upcoming firmware upgrades this player will only improve. For the money paid, not sure how anything can beat it. If I were to buy a Toshiba Xa2 and Panny BD30 I would pay a lot more than the MSRP than this player and be back to the multiple players again.

I have had this player 5 days no and so far it has been excellent. DVD upconversion is outstanding and of course so is HDDVD and Bluray DVD playback. It is an extremely quiet player and nice not having to hear the whining fan of my PS3 anymore. Plus now my family does not have to worry about multiple players when I am not around. With upcoming firmware upgrades this player will only improve. For the money paid, not sure how anything can beat it. If I were to buy a Toshiba Xa2 and Panny BD30 I would pay a lot more than the MSRP than this player and be back to the multiple players again.

I am facing my first full "purple" day, but was up until the wee hours playing with it.

Hooked up via component (sorry no HDMI on either my TV or AV Receiver) to a 1080i 65" Mitsubishi WS-65907 via an Onkyo TX-DS989. No problems with playing back any media (so far BR PotC-AWE, HD Stardust, Serenity, SD Meet the Robinsons, and DVD+R The Nightmare Before Christmas (which odly enough, does not up-convert to 1080i).

I have seen no issues with grain or noise, however my eye is not as trained as others and my display is about eight years old.

Colors are vibrant, definition is stunning (even on SD content). Start-up time is better than I had expected.

I will admit that the audio setup is a bit wonky in that I only have sound from the front three speakers when doing the on-board sound test (this happens in all modes, and I believe I have tested this via TOSLink and multi-channel). I've got it connected via TOSLink and the Onkyo's 5.1 channel analog input (funny - a $2K+ "flagship" 7.1 channel receiver only has input for 5.1!). The only way I can achieve audio from the rear channels is to put it into a simulation mode, so for now I am using audio connected via the fiber. It sounds better than ever, although the direct multi-channel appears to have greater dynamic range and fullness to the audio... but my HT space is fairly large & open and I don't like to sacrifice my back channels so I'll stick with TOSLink until a receiver upgrade comes along.

Some may be pleased to know that Logitech appears to have codes available as I added the BD-UP5000 to my Harmony 880 without having to "learn" any codes!

I intend to test some of my other HD (300, Hot Fuzz, Bourne Ultimatum) and BR (Close Encounters) titles as the day goes on and hope be adding the Ultimate Blade Runner Final Cut to my collection (don't know what format the gift will be on) but we've got family coming to attend the birthday party for my daughter shortly.

I'll post my firmware when I am able, but believe it to be the same as others as my manufacturing date was 11/07 and when attempting a firmware upgrade, it was found to be at the latest revision.

One thing regarding the network setup that I have found. DHCP and Dynamic DNS work, but the addresses do not show up in the interface as one would expect. I believe the fields are only used to display manual entries. I can see the device communicating via my router, and it also pops up on my Symantec console as a device using the LAN.

More as it becomes available, and only if I've got anything to add to the discussion that have not been covered before.

Over all (although I have nothing other than HD feeds from Dish Network to compare it with), I am TICKLED PURPLE over the purchase, as well the performance!!

I see that no one has answered this one. It is an HDMI handshake issue. I've had this happen (rarely) with my Samsung 1200 BD player. Fix - cycle through your projector inputs back to where the player is connected and that should solve it. If not, it may be an HDMI cable issue. Good luck.

i have mine connected through a zektor switch and i'm not sure if it is the zektor that is stabilizing/locking the signal or the samsung having some nice behevior, but what i notice is that when i switch inputs on my TV i don't lose the hdmi handshake/lock and the title will keep playing.

this is great as it allows me to switch to the input where i have my avr connected via component and i can check on the audio signal information, make changes (which quite frankly i don't do...had audio/video calibration done some time ago and i don't mess with anything but the volume and dsp modes )

haggisbingo - I checked a copy of the manual for your receiver (off the Marantz web site) and I think you are in even better shape than most. Check Page 23 and Page 30/31 on setting the trims for each of the 7.1 analog input channels. Rather than just having a fixed 10dB LFE bump like many receivers, yours allows each channel to be adjusted and saved - which overcomes part of the current (IMHO - minor) shortcomings of the 5000 analog audio setup. Just go in and bump up the LFE channel 10dB and see what you think. If you have a SPL meter you can even set the other channel trim(s) if they are off.

Sorry for the OT post, but I believe the concept may be relevant for those using the analog outputs and feeling like bass is weak.

Doug

Doug,
Thanks again for this info - it made a world of difference for LPCM lossless and DD+ tracks.

Sileas, maybe config info should go in the FAQ for analog audio setup. Especially if others are likely to have their SubWoofer set 10db too low by default on their receiver..

There appear to be two power commands -- like someone was thinking about separate on and off, but the both toggle power.

But...

1) PLAY and EJECT turn the 5000 on

2) After something like 45-60 minutes of no activity and not playing a disc the 5000 powers down automatically.

3) Turning the 5000 on will play a disc if there's one in the drive.

4) You can issue a POWER command immediately after a PLAY command.

So you can essentially forget putting power commands into your system on/off macros or use sequences like I did:

Since pressing the POWER button on the 5000 or it's remote plays a disc, I just use the PLAY command as "power on" in my system ON macro.

I use PLAY followed by POWER for "power off" in my system OFF macro. If the 5000's off, it says "HELLO" followed by "GOODBYE" and shuts down without attempting to play a disc. If it's on, starts playback but powers down immediately. If a disc is playing, it pauses, then powers down.

There is one minor snag: If you are playing a disc and you run your system ON macro, the 5000 will pause since PLAY and PAUSE do the same thing (except that PAUSE doesn't power on).

Turning the 5000 on as part of SYSTEM ON means you don't need to wait for the player to boot before you can insert a disc or play one that's already in the drive. Buy you're only saving 10-15 seconds.

I had the same problem, and I'm also using the analog outs. I believe the dynamic range of the 5000 and the HD audio is so great that the normal volume setting is such that the loud bass is driving the speakers beyond anything I've ever experienced.

It does seem like it has something to do with the dynamic range, but I don't think the speakers are actually distorting. It feels more like DAC errors since the exact same pops and crackles can be heard in the exact same places on replay. There was nothing organic about it - no randomness to the sonic qualities or placement. The "sound artifacts" were 100% reproducible for me at various volume levels.

So far, this has only occurred on SD-DVD with MC analog audio. I'm not as lucky as you to have the extra bass management you've got - nice! I'll have to stick with the *small* setting until something better comes along.

I know the 5000 can play CD-R, CD-RW, DVD-R, DVD-RW. Can it play these formats with jpg images? I noticed while loading a movie the the display on the player will scroll slide show. What does that mean? I tried a CD-R with Jpg images and I got an error message "player cannot play disk".

Watched Apocalypto in Blue-ray and it was excellent. The picture was excellent the sound was excellent. I tried to play the movie in 24Fs but got an error message to check device capablity or something to that effect. Can Acocalypto be played at 24Fs?

I watched Apocalypto in Blue-ray and it was excellent. The picture was excellent the sound was excellent. I tried to play the movie in 24Fs but got an error message to check device capablity or something to that effect. Can Acocalypto be played at 24Fs?

I have my 5000 hooked up to my Sony 40" XBR2 with an HDMI and optical to my Onyko 803. I have noticed the volume going to the TV to be somewhat low. I normally listen to the television at a 12-15 setting but the 5000 with the HDMI I have to set the volume at 20-25 to get the same sound level. Has any one else experienced?

I love the player. Watched Bourne Ultimatum SD DVD and the picture and sound were excellent.

if anyone else is able to a/b playback on the 5k and one of the tosh players, please play any title and compare the menu overlays and in general playback.

i used transformers and bourne ultimatum...the menu difference i found noticeable on bourne then i was scrutinizing the video on transformers and i'm not sure if it is a result of the two units using two different "pause" modes but on my display i'm seeing interlacing/jaggies.

i was reviewing ch 3 for the snow scene and noticed it when they zoom in on the boat trapped in the ice and you can see the carved woman on the boat...look at the chain links and/or other edges.

then as soon as it switches back to the classroom i was looking at the boys tshirt collar when he is lifting his arm up and scratching his elbow...there is where i find it noticeable.

when i switched to the XA1 i didn't see any of this when paused...now i don't know if i can see it sitting up close and watching while it is playing back.

here is a pic on the 5k; not very good but you can see the interlace/jaggie edges on the collar

i also noticed that maybe there is a bit of overscan on the samsung?

[EDIT: of course, in my case i am outputting 1080i as my TV, while it ultimately displays 1080p on its 1080p panel, it only accepts 1080i...i'll have to move this over to my Pio plasma to see if this goes away when outputting 1080p24

i've attached some crude photos but they are enough to see what i'm seeing; 15/16 are the 5K ... 17/18 are the XA1 ... both going 1080i over hdmi to Qualia 006; shot with sony dsc-t100 w/macro enabled, no flash]

I watched Apocalypto in Blue-ray and it was excellent. The picture was excellent the sound was excellent. I tried to play the movie in 24Fs but got an error message to check device capablity or something to that effect. Can Acocalypto be played at 24Fs?

Your TV has to be capable of displaying a 1080p/24 signal as well, judging from your most recent post I do not believe the LCD XBR2's support 1080p/24 (only the most current rev of Sony LCD's and SXRD's support this). When I play a HD DVD / BD on my Sony KDS-60A3000 and hit the display button it will say 1080p/24. I have 1080p and 24fps on, in the Samsung setup. I have not had to do anything more than that to get movies to play in that mode.

I was wondering if the player does 24fps for both Blu-ray and HD DVD? In Crutchfield's ad they state is only does 24fps for Blu-ray... is this correct? Also can you force the 24fps option to on?

Thanks.

I have seen it do 1080p/24 for both BD and HD DVD on my Sony KDS-60A3000. If you stop the Samsung player and go into the setup menu you can change the resolution to 1080p and turn 24fps on. Make sure you change it to 1080p first and then turn 24fps on, otherwise it will turn 24fps off when switching resolutions, or at-least that is behavior I saw when changing it from 1080i to 1080p.

It does seem like it has something to do with the dynamic range, but I don't think the speakers are actually distorting. It feels more like DAC errors since the exact same pops and crackles can be heard in the exact same places on replay. There was nothing organic about it - no randomness to the sonic qualities or placement. The "sound artifacts" were 100% reproducible for me at various volume levels.

So far, this has only occurred on SD-DVD with MC analog audio. I'm not as lucky as you to have the extra bass management you've got - nice! I'll have to stick with the *small* setting until something better comes along.

Coreymd,
What kind of speakers do you have that are producing the pops?